


Among the Bubbles

by lisafyra



Category: Formula 1 RPF
Genre: Bubble Bath, But mostly fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, Fluff and Smut, Lando is in a really bad mood, M/M, and needs a cheer-up, luckily there's caring Carlos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-11
Updated: 2020-12-11
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:02:23
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,302
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27994206
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lisafyra/pseuds/lisafyra
Summary: At the 2020 winter test, Lando crashes the car and gives himself a hard time about it. But luckily, Carlos knows how to treat such cases of bad mood - in every way...(tw: strong self-criticism, negative thoughts about oneself)
Relationships: Lando Norris/Carlos Sainz Jr
Comments: 8
Kudos: 88





	Among the Bubbles

**Author's Note:**

> Whooops, here I go again: My second Carlando-piece! :D  
> This one took me longer than I actually had planned, but I had so much fun writing it! - also due to the really flattering feedback about my first story. So, thank you very much, everyone, I really appreciate it ♥  
> Hope you like this one, too!

**Barcelona, Spain - February 2020.  
Day 1 of pre-season-testing.**

Lando was still mad at himself when he got back to the hotel. This for sure had been the worst testing day of his racing career.

Freshly out of his F1 rookie year, he had started his second season with a crash. After only ten laps out on the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, he had suddenly lost the car and rushed it straight into the gravel, from where it, because of the momentum, had gone sideways into the barriers.

Total damage.

Well, not _total_ total, but at least enough to keep the mechanics busy for the rest of the afternoon and probably also late into the night.

And that still weighed on him.

Just because he had become too cocky on track and had gone full-speed over that one kerb, on his hunt for a fast lap. The car had felt so good before, way better than last year, and he had been sure that he could have got more out of it, too - but instead of setting new records for the team, he had caused them a shitload of extra-work.

Of course, nobody was openly angry with him and the first radio message had also been only about him and if he was okay - but just because nobody said it, doesn't mean the undisputed frustration was unnoticeable.

Lando had seen it in everyone’s faces back at the garage, and who could blame them. Every single person working at McLaren had put so much effort into building this car over the past months, into bringing it to life from the plans, out of more than ten-thousand individual parts, each thought out down to the last detail for the best performance on track - and then, not even 20 minutes after it had left the pits for the first time, the car looked as if it had been hit by a bus.

Never before had Lando experienced such a massive guilty conscience, combined with shame and anger.

He had been blessed with the honor of being the first one to drive it (even before Carlos!) and instead of living up to this credit of trust, he had failed miserably at it - and the only one he could blame was himself. Because he had wanted too much too soon.

That really shouldn’t have happened to him, and certainly not in his second year. Plainly unnecessary, for sure.

The grace period of being a rookie was over for him, he was a proper F1 driver now and as such, he should have known that he had to be careful with a new car first; that he should have found his way around before really racing it to its limits.

But he had felt so euphoric about being back in the game that he had been too confident about himself.

And that bothered him the most.

No technical defect, no unsuspectedly tricky weather conditions, no other car involved - it had only been him, him and his youthful impatience, which had caused the team an inconvenient delay in testing in the end.

Ten rounds on one day were ridiculously little and Lando hoped with all his heart that they were able to fix everything for Carlos’ turn tomorrow - and that they would not lose another important, important day at the track. He wouldn’t be able to forgive himself for that.

But this was not in his hands at all. He had to trust in the mechanics and their ability to function best under pressure, and especially, he had to _hope_ that, this time, it wasn’t too much pressure weighing on them…

Correspondingly in a bad mood, Lando walked through the hotel-lobby without even greeting the receptionist. He just pretended he didn’t see her with the hood of his McLaren sweater on and went straight over to the elevator, hammering on the button to call it.

And although this was a Spanish 5-star-hotel and certainly had the best technology, it still felt like _ages_ until the cabin arrived at him at ground floor, which made him only angrier with himself as he was confronted with his bloody impatience once more.

Unfortunately, the ride up took just as long, and when Lando got off the lift at the right floor, he didn’t know if to scream or to cry with frustration.

Grumpily, he walked to his room and just managed to keep himself from slamming the door - because even though he would have loved to do that, to let it all out, it wouldn't have changed anything either - except for having to pay for a broken hotel door, in the worst case.

And getting kicked out of his room for bad behaviour was definitely the last thing he needed right now.

With an annoyed groan, he let himself fall on the bed, arms spread to each side like a starfish in a hoodie, and stared at the ceiling, questioning his life.

He still couldn’t believe how fast this day had changed from humming _‘I’m so excited and I just can’t hide it!’_ on his way to the track to this bullshit here in only a few hours.

But before Lando could sink further into the depths of self-loathing, his phone vibrated in the pocket of his jeans, indicating a new text message. Automatically, he reached for it, thinking it was his mother at first, because she had somehow got wind about his shunt (…since thanks to the internet, such news spread fast nowadays!) and now wanted to hear that everything was okay from nobody but her son himself - but it wasn’t her. It was Carlos:

 _Hey, are you back? Think I heard your door_ , his gorgeous Spanish boyfriend had texted him and even though Lando wasn’t really in the mood to communicate, he unlocked his phone and dutifully wrote back - because it wasn’t Carlos’ fault that he’d had a rough day and also, you don’t let your loved ones wait.

But a simple _Yeah_ would do for now. He had too little motivation to write more.

Telling from the small green status-icon, Carlos was still online, and so it only took him a few seconds to answer back.

 _Wanna come over?,_ he asked, of course he did.

Ever since the last season, the both of them had spent so much time together off-track, almost whenever their tight schedule allowed them to and they had a spare minute - oh, and certainly when they discovered that they were more than just friends to each other…

But today, Lando hesitated for the first time.

He didn’t feel like having company and would have rather stayed on his own for the evening - and if he was honest, he had hoped that Carlos would somehow sense and suspect that, too, concerning the news.

Of course his boyfriend knew about the crash.

Even though the Spaniard had not been driving today and had been busy with his media and photo day instead (…a lot of ‘aggressively looking into cameras’, as Lando liked to put it) - they were still teammates. And as part of the team, his misfortune was of course not held secret to Carlos.

But, yeah, deep inside, Lando had really hoped that his boyfriend would give him some space and time for himself, instinctively knowing that this was what he needed the most now - but unfortunately, his wish was not granted:

 _Or shall I come to you?,_ Carlos suggested with another text, obviously assuming that Lando’s hesitation only had to do with that he was exhausted from the day and didn’t feel like moving anywhere anymore - and not about that he didn’t really fancy having company right now. (Ha. If only!)

His phone vibrated again.

 _Missed you lots,_ it said in the latest message, followed by a red heart.

With another deep sigh, Lando gave in. He was too tired to come up with an excuse or to explain the real deal. So he forced himself to get up from the bed and to walk back to the door, in order to unlock it, while he texted back: _Ok._ \- only one word again and also without returning the heart. He knew it was kinda rude, but he didn’t have much room for love and affection in his current state of mind.

Before his guilty conscience could overwhelm him, Lando hit _Send_ and then walked straight back to the bed, slumping on it. If he couldn’t be alone, then he at least wanted _that_. If it was up to him, he wouldn't leave this comfy piece anytime soon, at least not voluntairly - also much to the liking of his sore shoulder, which had it worst in the crash.

Lando was pretty sure his skin there was bruising already, telling from the way it hurt on contact… yeah, this would very likely keep him company for the next few days.

Awesome.

His attention was pulled away from his sinister thoughts when Lando heard how a door was opened and closed out on the floor, and it took just a few more seconds until there was a knock on his own room door.

“It’s open!”, he called across the room, of course knowing that it was Carlos - well, who else should it be? - and in the next moment, the door handle was pushed down and Carlos’ muscular figure indeed appeared in the doorway.

“Hey- oh, a welcome in bed?”, the Spaniard said in surprise, when he saw him laying there, and cheekily raised an eyebrow on that view, closing the door without looking.

Lando didn’t respond. Normally, he would have gladly taken the chance to lure Carlos into bed, too, and to start one hell of a make-out-session with his oh-so-handsome Spanish lover, but today, that was the last thing Lando thought of. So he just clammed up and looked away instead, not really knowing what to say, also.

Carlos knew what had happened anyway. There was no point in acting as if it hadn’t and playing it nice - not to mention he wasn’t too good at that either.

But still, even when he looked everywhere except Carlos’ face, Lando could hear how his boyfriend let out a compassionate sigh, before he, without further ado, slipped off his shoes and crawled up to him on the bed, carefully leaning over him to then place a kiss on his lips.

It was a tender one, one of the kind that make you feel loved and appreciated and safe, and although Lando didn’t want to feel like this, although he didn’t think he _deserved to feel like this_ after what he had done to the team today, he even so closed his eyes and went with it, virtually savouring the love and affection Carlos gave him and soaking it all in. It felt too good to _not_ enjoy it.

Their intimate moment lasted for a short while, before Carlos, much to Lando’s displeasure, pulled away again and propped himself up over him on one arm, still close enough that they could feel each other’s warmth.

“Hey”, the older one murmured and gently brushed a curl aside from Lando’s forehead with his other hand, tucking it back under the hood. “How you feeling?”

Lando knew that he never asked that question in the superficial, small-talk-y way most people do. When he asked how someone was doing, he _really_ meant it, with sincere interest.

But despite this knowledge, Lando decided to go with the easiest answer, uttering indistinctly that he was good, only a little sore in the left shoulder from the impact.

The check in the medical centered had shown that he, unlike his car, emerged unscathed from the accident.

Carlos shook his head.

“No. Like, how you _feeling?”_ , he specified, making it unmistakably clear what he meant - and maybe it was because he now had no rhetorical escape route anymore or the way Carlos’ so familiar brown eyes looked down on him from so close, but Lando suddenly found the whole situation too intense to endure - or to answer, even. So he just turned his head away and shrugged vaguely.

But as so often, his facial expressions gave it straight away. Most of the time, he didn't have to say a word for his boyfriend to know what was going on in his mind, and so even now.

Lando heard Carlos exhale with compassion again, before the older one dropped down on the mattress next to him, but only to pull him close in the next second.

“Don’t be too hard on yourself”, he whispered with his lovable distinctive accent and, in the attempt to comfort, gently stroked over Lando’s back, causing him to shiver with goosebumps.

“It’s not worth it. You can’t change things now anyway. It has happened, it’s shit, true - but you will see, tomorrow, the world will already look so much better again. It’s not… I mean, it could have happened to anyone, also to me, you know?”

 _But it happened to ME,_ Lando stubbornly answered back in his thoughts, even though didn’t dare to say it out loud.

He knew Carlos would tell him off for always being so self-critical. He always did that, even in front of the cameras when they were in a double-interview, and sometimes Lando deliberately tried to badmouth himself in front of the press then, only to hear Carlos resolutely disagree and speak so well of him in return.

It was a nice reassurance from time to time, to hear that his then-teammate-now-boyfriend thought he was a talented driver, despite being so young, and that he was doing a good job on the whole.

Today, though, he didn’t want to hear those things, because he felt like they weren’t true and he hated to be lied to.

And so, when Carlos wanted to make another attempt to console him, speaking about how often he himself had spun and lost a car, Lando had enough.

“Carlos, I- actually I don’t wanna talk about it”, he interrupted his boyfriend and immediately felt bad about it, because still, none of this was Carlos’ fault and his boyfriend only wanted to help.

“I just need to calm down, okay?”, he therefore hurried to explain, trying his best not to sound as angry as he felt inside. “Just… leave me be. Give me some time with it and I’m gonna be fine, but right now- I just _really_ don’t wanna talk about it.”

He shrugged again. “I don’t know, let’s play some FIFA or something”, he suggested, but without much enthusiasm, already looking everywhere again except for Carlos’ eyes, which had been watching him closely the whole time. Lando was sure the older one could see that he actually didn’t want to play, also not to mention that the Playstation was over in Carlos’ room, too.

But the Spaniard seemed to have other plans than letting him win a match in said game anyways: 

“Take off your clothes”, he just said, making Lando abruptly turn his head.

_“What?!”_

Irritatedly, he looked at his boyfriend who was still laying next to him, pretty sure he had misheard that one - but Carlos kept a straight a face:

“Take off your clothes”, he repeated all serious, without even blinking, and also in that special tone that allowed no protest - Lando knew it from business on the race track, when the older one had clear ideas of what he needed from his engineers in terms of car-set-up.

However, he had never used it on him so far - but it wasn’t only that what made Lando pull an indignant face:

“Listen, I’m- …I’m _definitely_ not in the mood for-”

“Not _this,_ _cariño”,_ Carlos quickly cut him short and, on Lando’s now even more confused look, finally explained what he meant instead: “We’re gonna take a bath!”

 _We’re gonna WHAT?!,_ it ran through Lando’s head, but before he could say anything, Carlos got up from the bed.

“C’mon, you will like it, you’ll see!”, he promised and eagerly indicated to follow him - which he did, out of reflex, but also out of curiosity.

His anger suddenly was vanished and, instead, had been replaced by a delicate mixture of confusion and surprise. He didn’t even care about the hood of his sweater slipping off his head when he got up as well, even though his hair must have been a mess.

There were other thoughts occupying his mind.

To be honest, he still wasn’t sure if he might not have misunderstood something with this, when he walked into the bathroom of his hotel-room with Carlos. The Spaniard, though, acted with total confidence, going straight for the luxurious bath tub and turning up the faucet in a flowing movement.

The tub indeed was opulently sized, Lando had noticed that before, and he had already been looking forward to letting himself sink into it after the (proposedly) many laps on the track - but it hadn't crossed his mind to not be alone then, but to do it with Carlos. _Together._

He watched his said boyfriend checking on the water temperature and adjusting it as if it was the most natural thing in the world for the two of them after a day of (almost) racing.

But it wasn't. And probably that was the reason why Lando, when Carlos turned back to him, felt the sudden urge to clear his throat, both astonished and intimated by the fact that the older one apparently _really_ wanted to do this.

“…you serious?”, he asked just to be clear, sounding more suspicious than he wanted - but, honestly, this was _by far_ not what he had expected from this day!

Carlos, though, just nodded.

“Yeah, why not? Helps to calm down the nerves best”, he said and at the same time reached into the pocket of his zip-hoodie, holding out two colorful little orbs to Lando, one of a rather lilac colour, the other one dark green - bath bombs, as he recognized a second later.

“Lavender or eucalyptus?”

“Lavender”, Lando picked without even thinking, still too overwhelmed by all… _this!_ , and without further ado, Carlos dropped said violet bath bomb into the filling tub, where it first went down with a little _›blub!‹_ and then came up to the surface again, floating on the rising water level.

Lando watched with fascination as the soap ball started to dissolve and the first bit of foam emerged, giving the water a soft purple shimmer.

This was so surreal. Had he maybe fallen asleep on the bed and he was dreaming right now? Sounded legit, especially considering he had been in a crash earlier this day and his body needed some rest from the whole turmoil.

But why, if this was a dream, could he so clearly smell the soft scent of lavender blossoms that soon filled the bathroom then…?

Suddenly the lights dropped and Lando involuntarily flinched and turned around in fright - only to see his beloved boyfriend fiddling with the switches, dimming the lights a little for a “more cozy” setting, as he explained with a quick smile.

Lando just nodded knowingly, feeling a little lost, and he wanted to make a stupid joke about how they both might trip and fall in these bad lightning conditions, so neither of them would do testing anymore - but before he could even start, he lost his tongue again: Because Carlos started to outright strip out of his clothes.

Without hesitation, the Spaniard took off his zip-hoodie and threw it to the ground, directly followed by the plain white t-shirt that he was wearing underneath.

And Lando couldn’t help but let his gaze wander over Carlos’ upper body, subconsciously eyeing the tanned skin and the toned muscles underneath as if he had to portray him, over to the little curls of chest hair and the even more delicate hairline beneath his bellybutton…

Even though this was not an unfamiliar view for him anymore, he was once more amazed by how freaking handsome his boyfriend looked - especially in the dim lightning, which charmed his trained shoulders better than Photoshop.

And Carlos didn’t even stop there, but continued to get rid off the remaining clothes, too, more precisely his black jeans and also his socks, until he was only in boxers and Lando almost drooling.

That was when Carlos’ eyes fell on him.

“C’mon!”, the older one urged him, when he saw that, unlike him, Lando was still fully clothed. “Or do you need help?”

As appealing as the offer sounded, he quickly shook his head and at the same time, felt his cheeks blushing.

“No…”, he muttered, a little ashamed from having got caught staring. But seriously, who could blame him, with this view right in front of him…!

Out of reflex he did as he was told and started to undress, too. And although he meanwhile was comfortable with being naked around Carlos in terms of making-out, his fingers now were shaking a little when he pulled his own pullover over his head.

Because… this was different. They had never gone bathing together before. Quick showers after sex, yes, when they were both still sweaty and dreamy, and also in the attempt to save time when they had done it during a race weekend - but never bathing.

And somehow, Lando found the idea of relaxing in the tub together with Carlos weirdly intimate and a part of him was nervous about it. A good kind of nervous, though, but nervous enough to make him extra-clumsy when he wriggled out of his jeans as well, so it took a little longer than usual - but somehow he managed to get rid of it and dropped it to the ground as well, piling his clothes right next to Carlos’.

The Spaniard, however, was still ahead of him in terms of undressing, already dropping his boxers and climbing into the still filling bath tub, as Lando noticed out of the corner of his eye, trying his hardest not to look up and stare again.

Next, he heard how his boyfriend drew in a sharp breath, followed by a relieved sigh when he sat down among the bubbles. Apparently, the water had exactly the perfect temperature to make your eyelids flutter. Which should have been the final argument for Lando to hurry with his clothes and get in there as well, and he also made himself take off his pants -

But somehow, he suddenly felt uncomfortable with just… standing there on his own.

Whenever he had been naked with Carlos before, he’s had his caressing hands all over him, ensuring him he was so loved and desirable - while right now, he was by himself and his boyfriend was already enjoying the warmth of the bubble bath with his lids closed and his hands were nowhere near Lando.

And once more, his facial expressions must have revealed his thoughts, because when Carlos looked up for him, probably wondering why he was not already with him by now, and their gaze met, and when Lando out of reflex turned a little away under his gaze, sheepishly trying to cover himself - the older one just rolled his eyes in loving annoyance.

“C’mon, _cabrón,_ don’t be shy”, he said and made a grabby hand towards him, a reassuring, but also cheeky smile on his face and small drops of water dripping down from his fingers. “Come to me.”

That was all Lando needed to hear. Gladly, he took the invitation and reached for Carlos’ hand, to let him help him get into the tub, too. And while he was thinking about _how_ to actually get in - like, should he sit across from Carlos or right with him…? -, the older one took made that decision for him and naturally pulled him in his arms, making him sit between his legs.

A low moan slipped from Lando lips as he leaned his back against Carlos’ chest and his body submerged in the warm water; a sound of pure bliss that he, under no circumstances, could have held back. This felt amazing!

The overall warmth caused him to relax in no time, plus, the pleasant scent of lavender also had done its part and Lando felt how, beyond his control, the last bit of frustration disappeared from his head when he let himself sink into his boyfriend’s embrace.

Subconsciously, he closed his eyes to fully soak in the feeling of contentment coming over him; and Carlos behind, whose arms were safely wrapped around Lando's torso, seemed to feel the same, so they stayed like this for a bit. The older one only reached for the tap when the tub was about to overflow, lazily kicking the handle down again with his foot, but apart from that, they didn’t move, just cuddling among the bubbles in consensual silence and fully savouring the moment and the soothing warmth of the water surrounding them.

“So… tell me, how’s that?”, Carlos asked after a while, his voice almost as soft and pleasant as the bubble bath itself, while stroking Lando’s upper arm with tender fingers.

Lando himself let out another sigh of delight.

“Nice…”, he mumbled absently, with speaking being almost beyond his capabilities as relaxed as he was, and nonetheless, that one word summed his feelings up perfectly - it _was_ nice, definitely. Had he been unsure about this whole thing not even a few minutes ago, he now even was wondering why they had not done this earlier. It was the nicest kind of _nice_.

And yet, his answer caused Carlos to snort behind him:

 _“Excuse me?”_ , the older one complained. “You’re in a bubble bath with me and you just find it _‘nice’?!”_

Lando couldn’t help but grin. He loved his Spaniards a little arrogant from time to time and even more, he loved provoking it by being a good tease himself:

 _“Pretty_ nice”, he so corrected himself with a big smile on his face and, as to prove it, he trustingly nestled closer in Carlos’ arms - which his boyfriend let him do without protest. Quite the reverse, he also wrapped his arms tighter around Lando’s lean torso and let out a soft chuckle.

“Happy to hear that…”

With these words, he placed a loving kiss on the back of Lando’s head, before he started stroking through his curls with damp fingers, causing Lando to let out yet another quiet sigh of pleasure.

Oh, he always _loved_ it when Carlos played with his hair, caressing the sensitive skin of his scalp and most of the time instantly causing goosebumps on him with doing so.

This felt _pretty nice,_ too.

To his delight, the Spaniard let him enjoy that feeling for a bit, before his hand wandered down to his shoulders.

“Left side is worse?”, he wanted to know, gently applying pressure on the tensed muscles.

Lando still didn’t open his eyes, but nodded. “Yeah.”

And as soon as he had said that, Carlos started with a one-handed massage, paying special attention to the affected shoulder, going for where it hurt the most, but leaving out the already slightly bruised bits from the impact.

“Relax”, the Spaniard whispered, while kneading him softly. “This is quality time now!”

And quality time it was.

The way Carlos treated his shoulder was exactly what Lando needed, even though it was a bit uncomfortable at first from the defensive tension. But soon, the painfully strained muscles gradually surrendered under the Spaniard’s magic touch, relaxing again slowly, but surely.

“Is that good?”, Carlos asked after a bit, for sure noticing, too, how the musculature offered less and less resistance to the pressure of his hand.

Lando nodded and hummed a simple “Mhmm” back, pausing a few seconds in contentment before adding: _“Very_ good.”

He let his head fall forward, putting the chin to his chest, in order to give Carlos better access, which the Spaniard right away took advantage of, gripping Lando’s shoulder a little harder and going for wider circles with his thumb, causing him to quietly moan with relief.

The massage was like right from heaven, making it impossible for him to not feel better - good enough to even joke around a little:

“…so good actually, that I’m willing to forget to ask why the hell you casually carry around bath bombs with you hu?”, he mumbled an indistinctive tease and even though he still had his eyes closed, he could hear how Carlos was smiling when he answered “Just for such a case!” in the most confident tone.

“I asked the room service for them. I had a feeling you could need something like this”, the Spaniard admitted and Lando had to smile, too, just by hearing that. His boyfriend calling the room service just to order some bath bombs for him because he had a rough day and needed a cheer-up - that was more than cute.

 _Caring Carlos,_ as he sometimes liked to call him, at his best.

Carefully, so that they didn’t hit bump their heads, Lando sat up and turned around to him - well, or at least he tried as much as the limited space in the tub and their entangled sitting position let him. And although his back wasn’t too happy about the twist, Lando nonetheless felt nothing but deep, deep affection when he looked in his boyfriend’s eyes.

“Thank you”, he whispered with honest gratitude and, as if to prove that he really meant it, he then leant in for a kiss.

And it was as if perfection had made its way to earth.

The warm water and the even warmer embrace they shared, the soft scent of lavender in the air, the dim lights, the overall coziness in this moment of time-out from the world outside this room - no words could describe how much Lando liked all this.

Rarely had he felt so full of love and so massively grateful - and having _Caring Carlos_ as your boyfriend sets the bar quite high! -, so he, who initially had wanted to spend the evening alone and not to be bothered by anyone, now was so glad that Carlos had prevailed with his idea and made _this_ possible instead.

Tsss - _staying on his own._ How the hell could he even have considered that…?!

Right now, he was so full of love that he longed for nothing more than his Spaniard’s near.

“I thought you said you weren’t in the mood?”, Carlos asked, when Lando picked up the pace and their kisses became more passionate. He obviously was at least slightly surprised by the sudden mood change, but apparently not surprised enough to not go with it - much to Lando’s relief, because he wouldn't have let him pull away anyway. He just needed him too much right now.

“Changed my mind”, he uttered breathlessly, before already pulling Carlos closer again, running his fingers through the dark black mane of his boyfriend and kissing him with all he had, leaving no doubts about what he wanted for now.

And since Carlos didn’t seem to mind, too, or to even need a second invitation, what had started out as a relaxing bubble bath turned into an ardent make-out session on the spot; and they kissed as if they hadn’t seen for weeks and not only a few hours since this morning, giving each other everything with their lips and tongues and touches.

…no wonder that it didn’t take long until the first wave water poured over the rim of the bathtub, gushing onto the floor tiles with a splashing noise.

“Whoops!”

Carlos involuntarily broke the kiss, out of reflex turning his head to see what had happened, and Lando did the same, albeit feeling a bit lightheaded and disoriented at first (…who needs oxygen when you could be kissed by Carlos Sainz?!) - but then he saw the shimmer of water on the floor, too.

“Oh-”, he went, and apart from being totally out of breath, he instantly felt guilty for causing that mess. “Uhm…”

Carlos, though, just laughed.

“Oh my, you’re so clumsy!”, he teased him, but ere Lando could be offended - _oi,_ that clearly hadn’t been his fault alone, that was team effort! - , he gave him a reconciling look. “C’mon. Let me take care of you, before you flood the whole bathroom, you muppet!”

And before Lando even knew, his boyfriend already had pulled him back into his arms, making him lean against his chest like at the beginning. And when his big hand reached down between his legs, grabbing hold of his semi-hard manhood - that was when he realized _what exactly_ Carlos had meant by ‘taking care’.

_Oh. Oh!_

But the ‘surprise’ couldn't have been more likeable and Lando didn’t not at all think about protesting, not even for a single second. That for he enjoyed the prospect of what was awaiting him way too much, making his growing hardness twitch in excitement and sending a shiver of adrenaline down his spine.

So he obediently (but with an undeniable anticipatory smirk on his face) sank into Carlos’ arms and let him do the work for tonight.

And oh boy - he _did_ do the work.

Only a few minutes later, Lando was a shuddering mess in his teammate’s arms, alternately gasping for air and letting out sweet moans trough his parted lips, barely able to think straight anymore - or to think at all. His mouth felt dry and his cheeks and throat were flushed with arousal, and the heat between his thighs was at the edge of what he could endure.

A few months in their relationship, Carlos already had quite a good idea of what buttons to push on him, as Lando had to admit to himself once again, and he took advantage of that knowledge without mercy. With one arm wrapped around his torso like a safety bar, the older one was holding him in place, so that he couldn’t wriggle around too much, while his other hand was making him see stars, stroking his hard-on with firm moves.

Again Lando shuddered, when Carlos’ thumb once more brushed over his tip, almost making him curl his toes by doing so. Reflexively he reinforced his grip on the arm around his chest, while unintentionally digging his fingers into the flesh of Carlos’ thigh with the other hand, seeking hold.

But when his boyfriend went for the same move again straightaway, no hold was strong enough for what it made him feel and Lando just couldn’t contain himself anymore. He threw his head back with a moan, giving Carlos perfect access to his throat - which the Spaniard instantly hungrily covered with kisses, attacking the sensitive skin with his lips, tongue and teeth, definitely totally aware of how much he loved this and how much it turned him on.

As a result of that, it wasn’t long until Lando was getting so close that his hips developed a life of their own, involuntarily twitching under Carlos’ touches, alternately bucking down and thrusting towards his hand, trying to get more out of it.

“Careful…”, the older one’s husky voice warned him, since his restlessness got the water in turmoil again, but seriously, Lando couldn’t have cared less about ruined bathroom tiles or anything by now - they could wipe them dry later, or he’d pay for the damage, screw it!

Right now, he all he could think of, all he _needed_ was the sweet thrill of Carlos hand on his erection, giving him everything and yet not enough.

“Fuck, _Carlos…!”,_ he whimpered and clenched his eyes in sweet agony, tossing his head to the side. How could something feel so _incredibly-freaking-damn good_ and yet like torture at the same time?! And torture it was, being so close and with all the water almost painfully reducing the friction he wanted so badly…

Fortunately, his desperation didn’t go unnoticed by Carlos, because he again let his thumb do the magic move at the next stroke, for sure making him shudder with lust absolutely on purpose.

“C’mon, _cariño,_ let go”, the Spaniard whispered to him, clearly all heated himself, and his breath was tingling at Lando’s ear, giving him full-body-goosebumps. “You don’t have to hold back…” 

At the same time, he also sped up the movements of his hand, and together with two, three more strokes over his tip, it sent Lando over the edge. With a choked moan and some hasty last thrusts, he finally released, spilling white drops of cum all over his belly and Carlos’ hand, shimmering like pearls with the lilac water.

And then, everything was at ultimate peace.

Lando felt like a feather that was thrown from a rooftop and now slowly came floating down to the ground again, his own rapid heartbeat pounding in his ears while Carlos let him relish his high to the very last wave; gradually slowing down the movements of his hand, before stopping completely.

“There you go…”, Lando heard him whisper into his hair when he placed a loving kiss on his head, before Carlos then wrapped his arms around him and just held him tight for a moment, allowing him to recover and catch his breath again, just lightly stroking over his wet skin and letting him come to terms with reality again - which Lando definitely needed. After the long and stressful day, _this_ had totally finished him off. But in the best way possible, of course…

Though he had his eyes closed for a second, he felt how Carlos carefully wiped the marks of their intermezzo away from his weary body - or those who were able to be wiped away, at least, unlike the proud hickey on his neck…

He knew it was there, or reckoned one at least, as much as the Spaniard had worked on the sensitive skin there, and he could already foresee he’d have a hard time covering it up tomorrow, for the photo shoot - but he didn’t care.

All such things didn’t matter now. It was as if the world suddenly consisted only of pure contentment.

So when Carlos broke the silence and asked if he was feeling better now, there was only one suitable answer:

“Yes”, Lando managed to say in a hoarse voice and his lips automatically curled up in a smile - an exhausted, but very happy smile. He forced his tired self to turn his head, just enough that they could share a kiss, which gave away more of love and affection and gratefulness than all words known to mankind together could anyway. “Thanks…”

And that was when Lando realized that the world probably didn’t consist of contentment only for everyone, or more precisely, when he felt his boyfriends semi-hard erection pressed against his own thigh - and he immediately felt stupid for it, like, of course! How could he not have thought about that?! As if _that_ had gone unnoticed by Carlos!

But when he reached down to return the favor that his boyfriend had gifted him before, the older one - much to Lando’s irritation - broke the kiss, grabbing his hand and holding him back. _Hu?_

Carlos just shook his head, when their gaze met.

“This was about you”, he murmured, and before Lando could even open his mouth in protest, the Spaniard quickly added: “It’s okay, I’m good. Next time!” He winked. “And also, we should better get out now, before you get too cold” - which only now made Lando realize how much the water had already cooled down. He hadn’t even noticed before - or was it rather because his blood temperature was now back to normal again, from almost boiling…?

But nonetheless, Carlos was right, the water was actually too cold to longer stay in and the bubbles were also almost gone, so heavy-heartedly, as cozy as this had been, the both of them had to get out.

Carlos volunteered to go first and get towels for them, which was only convenient to Lando, since his knees still felt wobbly from his orgasm, so he was happy to get to sit down fore a few more seconds - and also, with that view: Dreamily, he watched how his boyfriend climbed out and, just how God had made him, moved towards the little shelf with the towels.

He grabbed one for himself first, quickly rubbing his stunning body dry and then effortlessly wrapped it around his hips, before taking another one for Lando and holding it out to him.

Lando, though, just pulled a face at the thought of having to move and he literally needed all his willpower to make his so-heavy-feeling body get up from the tub again - not to mention that he didn’t like the sudden chill either when his wet skin met with the comparatively air.

But thanks to Carlos, he didn’t have to freeze for longer than what as one or two seconds, since the older one welcomed him with the huge, fluffy towel on the spot and quickly wrapped him in, like a British burrito.

And while Lando instinctively pulled the fabric tighter around his shoulders, in the attempt to warm himself up again, Carlos even went to get even him a fresh T-shirt and boxers to sleep in from his suitcase.

Lando thanked him wordlessly with a faint smile, before he quickly put them on, whereas the Spaniard slipped back in what he had been wearing before the bath.

And when Lando asked him if he didn’t want to borrow something from his stuff, since Carlos’ own clothes of course still were in his room next door and neither of them wanted to walk over to get them - the Spaniard just smirked at him.

“As if they’d fit on me”, he teased him lovingly, before he revealed that this actually were his sleeping clothes and that he already had changed before he even had come over.

Lando’s eyes turned wide in surprise when it sank on him that his boyfriend obviously had planned to stay overnight in advance. That he had indeed plan _all this_ before.

“It’s all about being prepared, _cariño!”,_ Carlos defended himself with a wink, leaving no doubt about certain _other things in life_ where preparation was helpful, and Lando couldn’t help but giggle like a school boy, when Carlos wrapped him in the fluffy hotel-bathrobe and even tied the belt around his waist, as he if was an adorable Christmas present.

And as to finish his work, Carlos then leaned forward to place a kiss on his nose.

“Let me clean that up real quick, okay?”, he whispered with his charming accent. “Maybe you already wanna order us something to eat, at the room service…? Cause, I don’t know about you, but I’m actually quite hungry now.”

Lando nodded. It was only now he realized a) how empty his stomach felt - he hadn’t eaten anything since lunch at the track - and b) that the tiles around the tub were actually heavily glistering in the dim lights, much to his surprise: He hadn’t even noticed so much water loss while they had been at it, but now, it looked as if someone had knocked over a bucket in here. _Whoops…_

“Shouldn’t I, like… help you?”, he asked, since obviously, it would be done faster with two people - even if he sometimes appeared to be a little clumsy. But after everything Carlos had done for him today, he had not only a bit of a guilty conscience about letting him do the clean-up all alone.

But the Spaniard just shook his head and determinedly shoved him out of the bath. “You take care of dinner, I do the drying. See you in a minute!”

 _Okay then…,_ Lando thought with a grin and dutifully padded into the bedroom with bare feet. _If he asks so nicely…_

So he ordered some pizza for Carlos and him over the room phone, which the employee on the other end of the line promised to be delivered to him in the next fifteen minutes. Lando thanked him before hanging up - and with that, his part was done. Taking care of dinner? Check!

So with a little jump, he threw himself on the bed again, to look at the ceiling just like earlier this evening - but so much happier now.

It was unbelievable what that bubble bath had done for him and even more, what great effect Carlos always had on him. How the older one was able to bring him up again from his worst to this now very relaxed and content version of himself - and not only because of the _finale grande._

Apart from the indeed very pleasant _finish,_ also his shoulder felt so much better than before.

If they weren’t already teammates, he would hire Carlos as his personal masseur, he thought to himself, while getting comfortable on the duvets - when he suddenly felt something bothering him in the back. _Hu?_

A bit clueless about what it could be, he groped for it, only to pull out his phone from underneath himself.

 _Yeah, right._ He had just dropped it down on the bed after the last text to Carlos - before the evening was about to turn to the better.

And he already wanted to put it aside again, because he didn’t feel like checking social media or anything, not wanting to let anything interfere with this beautiful, peaceful moment now. But the pick-up-sensor automatically made the screen light up, showing him that he got a new text message, sender: Mike.

Lando’s heart rate sped up immediately when he read the name of his rear-end-mechanic. They had never really texted before, so there had to be a reason why he did now - either really good or really bad. And even though Lando wasn’t sure if he really wanted to know, after _this_ day, he still swiped to open the message.

Instinctively, he didn’t really read but rather skimmed the text at first, searching for clues to something bad in it, like that they were unable to fix the car fast enough and therefore had to quit testing - but much to his surprise, quiet the opposite was true:

In a few sentences, Mike told him that the damage wasn’t as bad as they had reckoned and that they already were almost finished repairing it, probably needing one more hour or two of work.

He wrote that he had had a feeling that the whole thing had upset him, Lando, a lot and so he just wanted to let him know that things were gonna be okay. That nobody was mad at him and that he shouldn’t take it to heart too much. That they’d just move on by tomorrow - fearlessly forward - and that he as a proper F1 driver, no longer rookie, should do the same.

Lando couldn’t believe his eyes. Out of reflex, he read the message again, almost reckoning it would change - but the words were there. Reassuring him it was all under control. No need to worry.

Reading this was like balm to his soul and he felt his eyes water in relief, while he at the same time couldn’t help but smile. This was for sure the cherry on the cake of this evening!

“What you smiling at?”

Carlos’ voice made Lando take his eyes off the phone screen and when he looked up, he saw his boyfriend, in his boxers and sleeping-T-shirt, coming over to join him on the bed - with a thoroughly curious expression on his face.

“Oh…” Lando’s smile became even brighter. “It’s just…”

And then he told him about the good news, leaving out no detail also of the crash itself and how he had seriously thought this would be it for these testing days. And when he finished, he really felt as if a load weighing tons had been taken from his chest. The car, the team, Carlos’ drive tomorrow - everything was gonna be okay. _He_ was gonna be okay.

They were only interrupted when the room service knocked on the door to deliver the food order. And so, a few minutes later, the both drivers found themselves slouching on the bed, enjoying their pizza and watching some random comedy film that was on the TV right then.

Lando didn’t understand a word, though, because it was in Spanish, but he still found it funny to watch. Some things didn’t need words.

Also he paid more attention to a certain Spaniard next to him anyway, catching himself looking over to Carlos every now and then and watching his boyfriend, who in contrast to him followed the plot with interest, with sincere admiration.

 _Some things don’t need words, indeed,_ he thought to himself with a smile, feeling the butterflies fly in his chest when he once again realized how much he loved Carlos. Tonight had one more time proven that the older one was the best thing that could have happened to Lando - no doubt.

Filled with great gratitude for having this wonderful man in his life, and also massively lovestruck, Lando turned his attention towards the TV again and to the last slice of pizza, secretly smiling to himself all the way while eating.

_No doubt at all._

After they had finished their dinner, which left them stuffed and happy, they decided to call it a day and to go to sleep. And when they switched off the lights and cuddled up under the duvets, on Lando’s a-little-too-small-for-two hotel bed, the ultimate peak of coziness was reached. Quite a contrast to how that day had temporarily looked!

“I’m so, so glad it ended up this way”, Lando murmured into the dark. He had snuggled up to Carlos’ side, while the older one was laying on his back - well, he was almost on top of him, actually, with his head resting on Carlos’ shoulder, because again, this bed was actually too small for two. But neither of them did mind. They liked it close and cuddly anyway.

“See? I told you”, Carlos said with a soft smile, while he again let his fingers run through Lando’s curls. “Things might feel bad at first, but everything will work out in the end. You just need to have a little faith.”

“A little faith _and_ a boyfriend with bath bombs in his luggage”, Lando corrected him with a sleepy voice - the stroking of his scalp did its part, as well as his full stomach. “And pizza!”

He let out another sigh of well-being - without a clue how many it had already been this evening -, before nestling closer, if that was even possible, and tightening his hold around Carlos’ upper body. He always became a little needy for cuddles when he was tired. Carlos meanwhile knew that, too, but the older one just grinned and let him do so, also holding him close with his arms wrapped around his smaller body like a protection shield.

“If I get this every time I crash the car from now on, I might be tempted to go full-speed over every f-ing kerb next time…”, Lando dreamily mumbled into his boyfriend’s shirt.

Thereupon, Carlos let out a quiet chuckle.

“Oh, please don’t say that”, he lovingly told him off. “You definitely don’t have to crash for that, _cariño._ You can have this whenever you want…”

And as to prove it, the Spaniard leaned forward a little, in order to leave a small kiss on top of Lando’s head and bury his nose in the brown curls, which were even wilder now after the bath (or due to the constant ruffling, who knows).

And apparently, the older one had spotted the gallows humor in Lando’s voice, too, because after a short pause, he added: “And now stop thinking about the crash. You’re a great driver, you know that, don’t you?”

Lando hesitated. Deep inside of him, he knew that he wasn’t too bad behind the steering wheel, of course he wasn’t, otherwise he definitely wouldn’t have made his way to F1, but…

“Today surely hasn’t been my finest hour…”, he whispered back, his face still halfway buried in the fabric of Carlos’ t-shirt, exactly knowing that, if he lifted his head, his boyfriend would give him _that_ look - the one he always put on when Lando went down long way of self-criticizing-road again. But this time, Lando knew was not _too_ hard on himself by saying so:

“I mean, c’mon - it _was_ a shit drive. It _was”,_ he defended his point of view, though still not daring to look up, avoiding Carlos’ gaze. But even like his, he could feel how Carlos took a deep breath, making his chest rise underneath his head, and almost hear how the older one rolled his eyes in loving annoyance.

“Whatever”, he just waved it off. “Next time you’re in that car, you’ll show everyone it was just a blunder!” - and he sounded pretty convinced of that, as if there was no doubt about it at all.

Lando, though, wasn’t so sure.

 _Well, I hope so…,_ he thought to himself; not in the intent to be pessimistic about it and enjoying another round of self-pitying, no - but after today, he once more had been taught not to take things for granted, also in terms of his driving skills. He definitely didn’t want to challenge fate here with being too confident. But he hoped with all his heart that his next turn with the new McLaren would end up better than today.

And as if Carlos had read his mind in that second, he, without Lando having said anything out loud, continued to reassure him that the incident today wouldn’t change a thing:

“For me, you are still my number one”, he promised. “And you will always be, no matter how often you crash or whatever. I’d always choose you - in every way”, the Spaniard specified with an audible smile in his voice, and Lando couldn’t help but smile then, too.

The soft words went straight to his heart and warmed it even more than the hot bath could have ever done.

Suddenly longing for more of his touch, he quickly reached out for his boyfriend’s other hand - the one that was not busy with his hair or alternately stroking his back.

“Love you, Carlos”, Lando whispered, when they interlaced their fingers, and he lovingly squeezed the bigger hand holding his own.

The said gently brought their joined hands to his mouth, pressing a small kiss onto Lando’s knuckles, leaving a pleasant tingling on his skin.

“Love you too…”, he whispered back and let his thumb brush over Lando’s fingers a few times, before he let their hands sink down onto his broad chest again, without letting loose.

Again, Lando felt how Carlos took a deep breath underneath him.

“As much as I love night talks with you, you should get some sleep now”, the older one gently urged him. “For your media day tomorrow. You gotta look fresh as a daisy when you have your photos taken! …well, and for me also, before my drive”, he added, his voice sounding a little tired now, too.

This time, it was Lando who smirked. “Not that you crash, hu?”

Carlos just exhaled amusedly.“Well, we still got one bath bomb left, so…”, he suggested all innocently and on that, the both of them bursted out into giggling.

“I think we can make use of that even without you crash”, Lando proclaimed after they had calmed down again.

“Deal?”, Carlos asked back.

“Deal.” A contented smile appeared on Lando’s face, not visible in the dark, but clearly resonating in the way his whole body was relaxed in that moment. “Alright then…”

And with this prospect of what they’d do the next day, the both of them wished each other goodnight - for real this time! -, before going for that good night-sleep. And in the blink of an eye, they were off, sleeping peacefully, with no room for worries anymore, but with a soft scent of lavender still in the air.

**Author's Note:**

> ...hands up if you could use a bubble bath right now, too! - or rather a cold, refreshing shower? Both is fine ;)
> 
> Hope you enjoyed reading this piece. Feel free to let me know in the comments or via Tumblr (@hurtsprincess) ♥
> 
> Have a great day, wherever you are!


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